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Urban Fitness Enduroman Arch 2 Arc Relay New World Record June 9-11th 2011

by Steve Haywood on Thu 16 Jun 2011 03:49 PM BST | Permanent Link

By Andy Mouncey

Six men, one hour rotations – and the clock don’t stop till you get there

‘Dave – I need to speak to you, please.’

I kill the phone call to our pilot and draw Urban Fitness team leader Dave Grigg aside.

It’s around 10pm and the boys are pounding through the run miles as darkness falls on the approach to Maidstone.

‘We’re now looking at ‘conflicting’ weather reports which means it’s still uncertain whether a Channel swim is on. So I need to confirm with the pilot what you want to do.’

Dave doesn’t hesitate: ‘ We want to go for the Channel – if there’s a chance, we want to go for it.’

‘Even if the swim gets aborted part way through?’

A firm nod. ‘We have to give it a go – and we have to swim tomorrow – we can’t wait.’

‘Right – so here’s what I’ll tell the pilot: We swim straight away even if there’s only a small chance it’s on. Plan B is the coastal option which voids the challenge. Plan C is a harbour swim which also voids the challenge. Agreed?’

It is. The run start has already been delayed for 2 days due to bad weather in the Channel, and my conversations with our pilot from 2 days prior to that have all been around a ’Half & half chance’ at best.

So we wont know for certain until we get to Dover, and even then…

A small smile to myself – ‘reminds me of the scenario I faced during my own solo crossing in 2003. In the meantime, there’s some miles to run…

We’d set off from Marble Arc in late afternoon sunshine and rush hour traffic, and I’m on cycle escort duty for this first hour.

‘Relax and stay with me, ‘ I tell Edmund, the teams’ star swimmer. ‘ It’s easy to get separated on this first bit. Plenty of time to put the hammer down’

Fat chance. He’s tearing up the pavement through Hyde Park.

I sigh inwardly & switch to sergeant-major mode.

Diving through pedestrians and traffic we manage to stay connected and I bless my choice of cycle accompaniment on this first bit. 20 minutes in and I sense Edmund slowing enough to allow me to reduce the decibel level of my instructions. His target is the 7.3 miles handover location in Lewisham where the support vehicle is waiting, and one hour and a few seconds later to great excitement from everyone else, he’s in.

We’re off and running!

The first couple of hours settle everyone down. I can see we’re all drawing confidence as the major tasks are ticked off for the first time:

Make the rendezvous

Navigate the course

Hit the schedule

Nail the handovers

Rotate the roles and back eachother up

The excitement ramps up a few notches as the strong runners hit the pavement for the first time, and the only real stumble over the first part comes as we head through to midnight. First Stuart ends his leg doubled over with back problems, then Edmund finishes his second rotation looking like the wet bit can’t come soon enough for him.

It’s not putting much of a dent in the overall pace though, as Dave, Luke, & Tom pull the graveyard shift. A shot knee means Tom has to drag himself up the horrible long climb from Folkestone, but he gets going again on the descent into Dover – managing a vocal sprint to the final handover that will probably find its way into the local parish magazine. (‘Wild Beast Wakes The Neighbours!’ – I can see the headlines now).

To Rob falls the glory leg: A 12 minute plummet into town and a dash for the harbour front which has yours truly floundering in his wake. He goes so fast he beats the support vehicle carrying the rest of the team, so his reception is, er, late.

No matter: Leg 1, job done ahead of schedule – now where’s our boat, and does anyone know where some toilets are?

4.30am & our pilot vessel Sea Satin has just arrived.

‘Well?’ I’ve just greeted Lance, our skipper.

A wide grin. ‘Ah, let’s give it a go!’

Brilliant.

‘Dave? We’re on!’

Dover harbour is calm with hardly a breath of wind. I for one know that’s meaningless and beyond the harbour wall could be a very different story.

I’m not wrong. As we clear the breakwater and turn into the beach the boat is thrown about all over the place. Contrary to conventional strategy, the team have their strongest 3 swimmers off first on this leg. I have no idea if this is deliberate, but it strikes me that it will be a fortuitous choice.

Edmund, Luke & Tom all get a kicking in the first 3 hours, while Rob succumbs to seasickness big-style. We’re in Force 3-4 in 13-14 degree water, and the only blessing is that the winds are a conservative 11 knots. The team are subdued as the reality of the Channel hits. I’ve grabbed some sleep and on waking I’m met with a very sober Dave: ‘Around 4 miles, ‘he tells me. ‘But we expected it to be 7-8 by now…’ A check with Lance confirms the grim picture: The conditions are expected to remain for the duration…

Edmund in particular is finding the reality of his swim hard to cope with. Used to dominating the water and the competition he seems almost stunned at the yawing chasm between the distance he did cover in his hour and the distance he expected to cover. I grab some time with him in an attempt to help him shift his goalposts and make his peace with his first effort.

But I figure only a better second swim will get him smiling again.

8.30am Rob’s turn and it’s not his favourite medium and he’s not having a happy time. His stroke rate hovers around a slow 50 which just looks painful. But he does his hour without a pause, gets out shaking, throws up twice, and is bundled into his sleeping bag out for the count. Catch y’all in five hours, fellas…

10.30am and Dave exits after his hour, coherent and pleased. The rest of the team seem to draw on that and as if on cue, the sea has calmed somewhat. As we approach the Separation Zone and the weather continues to settle, Lance adds to the optimism: It seems a 12 hour swim could be still on depending on how the tide pushes us over these next 3-4 hours…

11.00am and the wind has dropped to a pathetic 3 knots with the sea looking almost flat calm. The boys are round to their second stint and I figure this is their chance to make some distance. I brief Tom on the conditions and show him the plot: ‘Tell Luke & Ed as well – you guys need to step it up.’

Stuart exits really buoyant and then Edmund is in for his Salvation Swim. He, Luke & Tom really nail it, and though rain sets in the sea remains pretty calm. Spirits are high and talk is of Paris. I draw Dave aside and pour cold water on that one: Focus on the swim, focus on your rotation, work your roles.

Because it is working. The guys have an on-boat system rehearsed and are reaping the benefits. Lance has noticed too and remarks on it. It’s a happy boat for sure…

2.30pm and the sea is much rougher again. Tom exits tired but in control and then Rob’s in for his second time. ‘Swim your b***ocks off!’ Lance tells him. So he does.

For me, it’s the swim of the crossing. France looks CLOSE when he finishes, though Rob works his tried and tested routine of throwing up and heading straight to sleep in his bag. The view can wait…

And so to the leader the spoils – and at 4.21pm Dave gets to do the landfall bit while everyone else, (except Tom & Rob who are asleep) goes mad on deck. The sun is out and the sky is blue. It’s a wonderful wonderful moment after all the uncertainties of a start and the tough first 4 hours. It takes me back and I’m grinning as much as everyone else: A sub-11 hour Channel swim! Formidable!

Which leaves the small matter of 180 miles or so of biking into Paris, and the boys are soon into the groove, the bit very much between their teeth. Everyone gives a full-on time trial effort which has them slumped in the vehicle at the end of their turn.

And STILL Driver No 1 George keeps up his ‘leap-out-give-it-to-‘em-big-and-personal’ routine at every stop. When Dave told me they were bringing their ‘glass half full guy’ behind the wheel, he sure wasn’t kidding. George (and co-driver Sam) had got to be worth at least 3 mph at this stage…

We get full darkness after around 70 miles and then in the early hours the wind and rain start. It is the low point of the trip and requires two inspirational turns from Dave & Rob to get us within striking distance of Paris.

Now the value of our departure windows and schedule is really enjoyed as we get to drive into Paris early Saturday morning with minimal traffic. The rain has let up and the sun emerges, and though this is the trickiest route-finding of the whole trip, the stress is lessened considerably with light traffic. Luke gets to enjoy the sights and sounds of what I think is one of the most beautiful cities in the world – and a bike riders’ Mecca.

Luke blasts up Champs De L’Eysee to complete a sub-12 hour ride & beat the support vehicle to the top. A handful of family and friends are there to meet us – hugs, handshakes and grins as wide as the Arc.

After some 300 miles of running, swimming & cycling, Team Urban Fitness have arrived in the early Parisen sunshine. There’s a new record on the books and a new standard to shoot for. Now, where’s those cigars?